March 15

Updated! Scroll down to see more pictures from the big camera!

Our adventures continue!

Lily has slept remarkably well!

How cute are Grace's polka dot sheets?

We visited an aquarium, and Adam was happy to tote Daisy around. Daisy might have enjoye it, too.

I wore Lily on my back in my new wrap, and she quickly fell asleep. Victory! She napped on my back for nearly two hours.

It was so nice exploring with three other adults. I barely had to worry about the kids at all!

We had so much fun!

Shark!

After lunch and naps for 1/3 of the children (Caleb and Daisy refused to sleep), we walked to a nearby park, despite the rain. It was a great adventure!

Hi, Daisy!

And now the kids are in their jammies, eating popcorn, and watching a movie.

Now that I'm home, I can upload pictures from the big camera. 

The kids totally took advantage of Grace's willingness to read book after book after book. Do you see that Caleb has two books in his hands and there's another by his feet? She  read all of them. Also, do you see the sweet doggie snuggling in the white blanket? I wish I  had gotten more pictures of the dogs, because the kids loved them!

Our first full day in Texas was cold, gray, and rainy, so we visited the Dallas World Aquarium. Amazingly, we were able to walk right in and get tickets; when we left, the line wrapped around the building. I'm pretty sure those people waited at least an hour just to get in the building.

With some help from Chris, I wrapped Lily on my back in the parking lot. It seemed to me that lots of bystanders were watching/staring. I suppose it is a strange sight?

Brother and sister. I love that Grace is really just a much prettier version of Chris - you can tell they're siblings from a mile away!

This place may have been an "aquarium", but they had a lot more than fish, including several monkeys in the rafters.

There were tons of people, and Caleb was a bit overwhelmed at time.

Well, hello Mr. Crocodile!

Sleeping Lily. What a blessing that she fell asleep on my back! The wrap kept her snug, secure, and safely insulated from the crowds. It was perfect!

Daisy loves Grace!

Two little goofballs!

Caleb was fascinated by this smaller crocodile.

I can't even remember what these two were looking at, but it was amazing!

Adam and Daisy developed a real fondness for each other.

I'm not sure who enjoyed the animals more - the kids, or Grace!

Caleb was looking at the stingray, but Daisy was looking at a shark swimming overhead.

Stingray!

Shark!

As we left - and walked past the throngs of people waiting to get in - we found this penguin posing for pictures. Daisy was delighted.

Aren't they too cute?

March 14

Updated: Scroll down for new pictures from the big camera!

Sorry for the late post - I hope no one was too worried (I'm talking about you, Mom!). We're busy having adventures, so my posts will be a bit light for a few days. I can't get to the computer, so I'll be trying my hand at mobile posting for a little bit.

We spent a lot of time in the car yesterday, so we made a bold move: we switched Daisy's car seat to forward-facing and moved it to the center of the car. I'm a firm believer in keeping kids rear-facing for as long as possible, though. You just can't argue with the safety data! Once our adventures are over, I'll probably switch her back to rear-facing for another year or so.

In the meantime, Daisy loves being forward-facing! She immediately began listing all the things she saw: "I see trees! I see the library! I see daycare! I see a green light! Green means GO, Daddy! I see EVERYTHING!!!" 

But the whole purpose of the car seat switch was so that she could see our travel DVD player. Caleb was shocked and amazed that he could watch movies in the car. I think he'll be pretty upset when we put the DVD player away again!

And this girl. She barely nursed all day because things were so hectic. Luckily, she was willing to try to drink some pumped milk from a sippy cup while we drove. She's definitely not proficient at it yet, but she put forth a good effort!

More adventures tomorrow!

Now that we're home, I'm able to upload pictures from my big camera and share more information about our trip. I'm always hesitant about disclosing specific information about us being away from home on the Internet, so I tried to keep things vague while we were away.

Chris' sister, Grace, and her husband, Adam, have lived in Texas for nearly ten years, and somehow we've never managed to visit them. Finally, we realized how ridiculous that was and decided to suck it up and make the ten-hour drive, despite our three small children packed in the back seat of my sedan. This was our first long trip with all three kids, so we broke up the drive there with stops every four hours or so: a visit with Chris' grandmother, then cousin and family for lunch, then a visit with college friends and their kids for dinner, then finally to Texas. It meant a less direct route, which added 2 hours of driving time, but it was absolutely worth it.

First, we visited with Grandmother. Grandmother has pretty advanced Alzheimer's, but we were lucky to visit on one of her really good days. We are blessed that Chris' Aunt Mary desires deeply to care for Grandmother in her home. As Grandmother's disease progresses, it becomes more and more challenging to care for her, but Mary and a team of caregivers ensure that Grandmother is in great health, in good spirits, and as comfortable as possible.

Grandmother raised eight children and has always loved babies, so when we walked through the door with Lily, her eyes lit up. Though her memory is gone, that vital part of her personality remains. She kissed and loved on Lily for quite a while. Though Lily looks startled here, she and Grandmother actually got along quite well.

After she had kissed on Lily's sweet cheeks for a while, she looked right at Chris and said, "I love you! I'm so happy to see you!" and gave him hugs and kisses. For that brief moment, Grandmother was back. It was beautiful and bittersweet, and then it was gone.

We brought some chocolate for Grandmother, and she was eager to share with the children. Daisy was happy to partake, and Grandmother asked every minute or so if she could also give some to the baby.

Caleb is not in any of these pictures because he was feeling very nervous. In fact, it's a miracle I was even able to take these pictures because most of the time he was holding my hand or clinging to my leg. 

This may be one of my favorite pictures of the visit. Grandmother and Lily were deep in conversation.

Though Chris' Aunt Mary wasn't able to be there for our visit, his cousin Thomas was. We were happy to get a chance to see him, too!

We kept our visit very brief, then headed over to Chris' cousin Rob's home. Rob was working, but we ate lunch and played with Jodi and their kids. It was just the break we all needed.

I thought Caleb and Daisy would be the only ones who needed to burn off energy, but I was wrong. Chris spent a good twenty minutes playing "Broncin' Buffalo" with Trey and Carson.

They played until Chris could play no more!

Then we got back on the road. Sadly, I took no pictures during our dinner visit with Shawn and Rachel and their kids, but we had lots of fun. We got back on the road around 8 pm, and soon the children were all asleep.

Beautiful. It didn't last long, but it was beautiful while it did.

We finally arrived at Grace's house around 12:45 am, after leaving our house at 7:30 am. I had high hopes of carrying sleeping babies into the house, but of course that was a ridiculous dream. They were so excited to see Grace and Adam!

Finally, we got them settled in and we were all ready for  bed. Caleb and Daisy were so excited to share a room! It was a long day, but totally worth it.

March 13

I had a busy day today, and my mom generously offered to come over and entertain the children so that I could accomplish everything that needed to get done. Between fun with Grandma and a warm, sunny afternoon, it ended up being a fun, productive day!

Daisy napped all afternoon - she literally slept from 1 to 5 pm - but Caleb and Lily enjoyed storytime on the swing with Grandma. Mom will hate this picture, but Lily is so cute that I couldn't resist. Sorry, Mom.

Lily was sleepy, and very interested in Grandma's necklace. Aren't they sweet together?

Then, something really exciting happened. 

My new wrap arrived! 

This wrap is a birthday gift from my mom. I chose a size 6 LennyLamb Cherry Lace wrap, made of 100% cotton. At 4.6 meters long, it's a good five feet longer than my other wrap, so I can do all kinds of different carries with it. I'm hoping that all of the extra fabric will make Lily more secure on my back and distribute her weight across my body better. It won't replace the shorter wrap; it will just serve different purposes. This one will be better when I know I'll be carrying Lily for a long time, while the other one is better if I need to quickly put her up on my back for a little while. I was nervous about the colors I picked, and surprised that I seem to be gravitating more toward reds and pinks than I ever have before, but in person it is just beautiful - more red than pink, and not quite as vibrant. This is my first real wrap, specifically woven for babywearing purposes, and I am beyond excited about it! (Can you tell that from the picture? Probably not.)

Lily loved it, too!

Then I put Lily down and let her swing. She was clearly excited.

Goodness. Isn't she funny?

We kind of adore that baby.

And then my dad stopped by on his way home from work! Caleb was so excited that Grandpa was here; Dad and I were inside talking, and Caleb came in and said, "Excuse me, Grandpa. I thought you were here to play with me?"

Ha!

So Grandpa went out and played and played and played with Caleb. 

Their slide game was pretty funny: Grandpa kept trying to "grab" Caleb, but somehow Caleb always slipped right through his arms. Caleb thought it was hilarious!

March 12

We do playdates all the time, but we very rarely host playdates for more than one family at our house. Today was an exception, because an old friend was in town. I have known Amanda, Jenni, and Abbey since I was maybe ten years old? We all grew up together in a Southern Baptist church, and we have such fond memories of our youth group shenanigans. It's amazing to be able to reconnect with friends now that we're all grown up, with children of our own!

These are just three of the ten kiddos who were here today, and Amanda has two more who opted to stay at Grandma's house. I love having the chance to watch my kids interact with the children of people I've known since I was a child!

Are we a good-looking bunch, or what?

(Amanda's littlest is blurred out because he is in the foster care system, and the state doesn't allow foster parents to post pictures of foster children online.)

Lily was napping during this picture, and Caleb looks so annoyed because he felt "squished". I'm pretty sure he looks less squished than any other child in the picture!

After our friends left, the kids enjoyed some much-needed downtime. It was fun, but chaotic!

Daisy: "Look what I drawing!"

And there's my sweet Lou, sitting in the sunshine!

March 11

More sunshine! More springtime! Hooray!

We spent almost all day outside, and it was beautiful. After we dropped Caleb off at preschool, the girls and I met some MOPS friends for a playdate at the park. We left just in time to pick up Caleb, eat lunch, and take naps. Lily woke up first, and she helped me get dinner prepped so that we could go outside when the big kids woke up.

As I chopped onions, Lily supervised on the counter. She was really interested in the onion, so I let her have a slice. I fully expected that she would taste it and be repulsed by it.

I was right on one count: she quickly put the onion in her mouth.

But surprisingly,

She really liked it! Lily gnawed on that piece of raw onion for at least five minutes. Who knew!

Once the kids woke up and dinner was prepared, we headed back outside. At first, I had Lily on my back in the wrap. But she really wanted to be down and exploring, and I really wanted to rake up some leaves. 

She was pretty happy using her wrap as a blanket!

(I was so excited to pull that little romper out for her to wear! I love almost all of Daisy's old summer clothes!)

Lily happily sat and watched her brother and sister run around like crazy people. She's mastered the sitting pivot, so she can turn to watch anything she wants. She also really enjoyed chewing on the wrap!

Oh! And peek-a-boo! I can't forget peek-a-boo!

Where's Lily?

Peek-a-boo!

As I type, we have the windows wide open and it's thunderstorming.

The forecast is for snow tomorrow.

Really.

March 10

Oh, springtime! You're here!

We had a playdate with church friends this morning. It was still a little bit cool out, but we had a lot of fun!

Don't let that pout fool you. This silly girl was so happy to be swinging!

See? She loves it! (and yes, I know those glasses are ridiculous. That's half the fun!)

We got home just in time for lunch, and all three kids napped at the same time. I even got to take a little nap with the windows wide open and the sunlight streaming in! After naps, it was warm enough to really play outside.

I took off Lily's socks so she could enjoy the pleasure of sunshine on her tootsies.

Caleb and Daisy put on shorts and t-shirts (Side note: Caleb's 4T shorts from last summer barely fit. Meanwhile, Daisy - who has outgrown all of her 2T shirts and needs more 3T shirts - still fits perfectly in her 24 month shorts from last summer.) and took off running.

Do you like Daisy's yellow jellies? I found those on clearance for $3 and couldn't resist them. She loves them. LOVES them.

They both came in for a rest, and settled on their little bench. Caleb tried to put his arm around Daisy, but she yelled, "NO! I DON'T LIKE IT!" Good for you, Daisy!

That's better. 

Caleb got new sandals, too. They're totally not my style, but he saw a similar pair in a catalog and thought they were really cool. So when I found these (also on clearance!) I snatched them up. He was so happy with them!

We have a side table on the porch that has lots of pebbles embedded in its surface. Daisy stood there, pointing to stones, saying, "This one is for Mommy, and this one is for Lily, and this one is Daddy's, and this one is Caleb's!" I can't imagine what is going on in her little head when she does that, but it's one of her favorite outside games.

And what was Lily doing?

Eating grass and leaves.

No. Really. She spent quite a while pulling up handfuls of dried grass and leaves and eating them.

At first I tried to stop her, but then I remembered my cardinal rule of parenting: first take pictures, then stop the nonsense.

Besides. How bad can it be for her?

Dogs and cats eat grass to clear out their digestive system; I'm sure the girl could use a bit more roughage in her life.

And look at how happy she is with her dried leaves!

She must have actually been really hungry, because when I brought her in so that I could make dinner, she demolished her yogurt melts.

She even grabbed her sippy cup all by herself and took a few swigs! Babies learning to eat are so funny!